Dick-a-Dick
Encyclopedia
Dick-a-Dick (Died 3 September 1870) was an Australia
n Aboriginal tracker
and cricketer
, a Wotjobaluk man of the people who spoke the Wergaia
language in the Wimmera
region of western Victoria
, Australia. He was a member of the first Australian cricket team to tour England in 1868.
In 1864 he helped track and rescue three children - Isaac, Jane and Frank Duff - lost in the bush near Natimuk
on the edge of the Little Desert
for nine days. After the main search was cancelled due to rain obliterating their tracks, the children's father and three Aborigines including Dick-a-Dick successfully tracked and found the children. Dick-a-Dick was lauded a hero and subsequently called King Richard. A plaque commemorating the role Dick-a-Dick played in the rescue of the children was placed in Mitre.
Dick-a-Dick was renowned for his skill in traditional weapons including the use of a waddy
and shield. On the cricket tour of England he often demonstrated these skills by inviting young men to hit him with a cricket ball thrown from 15 paces. According to reports he was never hit, even when up to three balls were thrown at the same time. He also always won the backwards sprint.
After returning from the tour of England as part of the Aboriginal cricket team his health deteriorated and he travelled back to his traditional country and the Ebenezer Mission
. He died at the mission on 3 September 1870. Just before his death he confessed his faith in Christianity and was baptised on 30 July 1870.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n Aboriginal tracker
Aboriginal tracker
In the years following British settlement in Australia, aboriginal trackers or black trackers, as they became known, were enlisted by settlers to assist them in navigating their way through the Australian landscape...
and cricketer
Cricketer
A cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....
, a Wotjobaluk man of the people who spoke the Wergaia
Wergaia
Wergaia is an Indigenous Australian language group in the Wimmera region of north-Western Victoria. 20 clans made up the Wergaia language group which consisted of four distinct dialects: Wudjubalug/Wotjobaluk; Djadjala/Djadjali; Buibadjali; Biwadjali...
language in the Wimmera
Wimmera
The Wimmera is a region in the west of the Australian state of Victoria.It covers the dryland farming area south of the range of Mallee scrub, east of the South Australia border and north of the Great Dividing Range...
region of western Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, Australia. He was a member of the first Australian cricket team to tour England in 1868.
In 1864 he helped track and rescue three children - Isaac, Jane and Frank Duff - lost in the bush near Natimuk
Natimuk, Victoria
Natimuk is a town in Western Victoria, Australia. It is located about 300km northwest of Melbourne. A further 10km west of Natimuk is one of Australia's best climbing areas, Mount Arapiles. At the 2006 census, Natimuk had a population of 449.-History:...
on the edge of the Little Desert
Little Desert National Park
The Little Desert National Park is in Victoria, Australia, 375 kilometres west of Melbourne. It extends from the Wimmera River in the east to near Naracoorte over the South Australian border in the west.-History:...
for nine days. After the main search was cancelled due to rain obliterating their tracks, the children's father and three Aborigines including Dick-a-Dick successfully tracked and found the children. Dick-a-Dick was lauded a hero and subsequently called King Richard. A plaque commemorating the role Dick-a-Dick played in the rescue of the children was placed in Mitre.
Dick-a-Dick was renowned for his skill in traditional weapons including the use of a waddy
Waddy
A Waddy, nulla nulla or hunting stick is an Australian Aboriginal war club. The former name comes from the Dharuk Aborigines of Port Jackson, Sydney....
and shield. On the cricket tour of England he often demonstrated these skills by inviting young men to hit him with a cricket ball thrown from 15 paces. According to reports he was never hit, even when up to three balls were thrown at the same time. He also always won the backwards sprint.
After returning from the tour of England as part of the Aboriginal cricket team his health deteriorated and he travelled back to his traditional country and the Ebenezer Mission
Ebenezer Mission
Ebenezer Mission station was established near Lake Hindmarsh, Victoria, Australia in 1859 by the Moravian Church on the land of the Wotjobaluk. The first missionaries were two Germans, Reverend Friedrich Hagenauer and Reverend F.W. Spieseke. In 1861 the Victorian Colonial Government gazetted as a...
. He died at the mission on 3 September 1870. Just before his death he confessed his faith in Christianity and was baptised on 30 July 1870.